The Dragon's Purr
by The Icy Darkness
Summary: The people of Cephiro's castle are having a normal day until the guard comes back from a battle with demons. And they bring a half-demon named Umi back with them. Little did the Cephirans know that she was the legendary knight of water. The third knight that they needed to complete the legend. Watch as they learn to cope with Umi's half-demondness and romances develop. ON HIATUS.
1. Chapter 1

Here you go! I haven't had any sleep in 36 hours so exuse any editing slips. Please comment and follow me. I have school starting up soon so sorry for delayed posting.

Im using OVA Clef cuz he is smexier. And for Umi's half demon form, she is Umi from the anime but with ears... And her human form is OVA Umi.

* * *

She heard the sound of battle clashing from far away. She also smelled human blood, and in a large quantity too. Sounds of clashing metal weapons echoed through the forest, along with the crackle of fire. There were also various elemental spells being summoned from one side.

She leaped from tree to tree easily until she got a vantage point. If one was watching, all that would be seen is a quickly moving shadow. Umi peered from the branch of the tree she was perching on, watching the battle rage on. The bright flames reflecting in her cerulean irises. She had no part in either side, therefore she had no need to participate in the battle.

The magic using side began to gain the advantage with their powerful spells that could not be matched. Fires burned the small shrubs and bushes but Umi would leave if one got too close.

But the other side were formidable opponents and happened to be of the elements fire and metal. They did not leave the magic side unscathed. Eventually, the battle was finished as the the leader of the other side called for a retreat.

The tall blonde commander sighed with a relaxation of his broad and armored shoulders. "Men, collect the deceased and help the wounded. Let's get out of here." He said in a rough voice.

"Yes, Dal LaFarga." Most of them replied, getting to work.

There was one dead body below Umi's tree, but she wasn't going to let some silly human scare her away. Her stubbornness got her in trouble occasionally though. As one of the tall soldiers collected the body, something told him to look up. And when he did, his eyes met flashing blue ones.

Umi made sure the hood of her cloak was fully covering the cat ears set behind the base of her bangs. Her long, uneven, blue hair was still tucked into the cloak. Even being a half-demon and all, taking on a whole army of trained swordsmen and mages would be a challenge.

"Who's there?" The man shouted in a commanding voice. Umi sighed and jumped nimbly down from the branch, making virtually no sound when she hit the ground, her hand resting on her hip very near her sword hilt.

"My name is Umi. I'm simply a traveller." She replied calmly.

"Then what were you doing here, just watching our battle? You have no business here." The soldier said, hand on the hilt of the sword at his hip.

"Simply watching." Umi replied with a shrug. She was trying to talk with her mouth as closed as possible without seeming suspicious, to keep them from seeing her pointed fangs. "It was my entertainment for the day, problem?"

A few more soldiers surrounded her, taking up fighting positions and remaining as backup. "Something doesn't seem right about her, Tako." One of them pointed out.

The soldier, now known as Tako, grunted agreement. "Pull down your hood, I want a good look at your face." The hood had been shading her face as well as covering her ears.

"I will not put down my hood." She replied steadily and stubbornly.

"You will put it down or we will have to take you as a prisoner for resisting." Tako challenged.

"Well, I guess you will have to take me as prisoner, because I'm not putting my hood down." Umi responded with a certain arrogance in her voice. She began to walk in the direction the group had come from. "So, shall we go?" If she even /wanted/ to escape, she couldn't do so without harming innocent humans. Oh well.

The soldiers got on the waiting horses, most of them holding a body or an injured person onto their horse. "To the castle!" LaFarga announced, slinging his legs onto his steed.

"Come here, little lady. Get on the horse." One of the scarred up soldiers rasped, beckoning to her.

"Nah, thanks for the offer, I'll go by foot." Umi replied waving the offer away with a hand. The man also rather creeped her out. She felt like screaming 'pervert' or 'lech' into his face. Just the way he said it disturbed her.

"We won't slow our pace for you. But you must show up at the castle at a decent time or we will come looking for you." LaFarga calmly warned before setting the horse to a full gallop, the whole troop following suit.

Umi sprinted to catch up to the group and did so very easily, heading straight to tie with the leader. Behind her, some soldiers were amazed.

"Wow, she's fast." One commented.

"Running at the pace of a horse? That's preposterous!"

"That must have taken a great deal of physical training."

Umi smirked, the emotion hidden in the shadow of her cloak. 'And this isn't even full speed.' She mused.

After about a quarter of an hour riding, the troop arrived at the castle gates. When LaFarga walked up to them, they slowly inched open until the door was fully open.

Umi followed them to the stables where they put their horses away and fed them.

-.-.-.-

The clink of fine silverware against china could be heard as the residents of the castle dined. Sitting next to King Ferio, the young and lively king with ivy hair and golden eyes, was the most powerful magic user in the whole nation. Master Mage Clef was the name of the mage and he had pale lavender hair with ice blue eyes. The hair was restrained by his coronet, except for a lock of fringe falling down the side of his face. He was looking down at his plate as he cut a piece of vegetable, when suddenly he sensed something and gasped, dropping his knife with a loud /klink/.

A few people looked away from the conversation they were active in. Two girls' eyes widened also, namely Fuu and Hikaru. The Magic Knights of Cephiro who were sworn to protect it. The fiery redhead, Hikaru, asked Clef "Did you sense that?" She blinked her crimson eyes in suprise.

"I also felt a disturbance." The blonde with glasses in front of her green eyes confirmed. She doubled as Queen along with her Magic Knight role.

"It's a... Demonic aura on the castle grounds." The Mage said slowly. "Hopefully the guards or the soldiers will handle it... Continue your meals." But he sounded hesitant. This aura was /very/ strange.

-.-.-.-

"Don't resist and neither my men or I will hurt you." LaFarga muttered to Umi. She made sure to keep her hands concealed in the pocket of her cloak to keep them from seeing her sharp claws. If she was revealed as a demon, she wouldn't be able to get out of there without trouble. "I'll take you to my commander." He grabbed her roughly by the arm - ignoring her hiss of distaste - and took her down many marble hallways to what seemed like a dining room.

Umi could tell it was by the strong scents of meat and gravy wafting around. The delectable scents made her mouth water and she realized how long it had been since she had a well prepared meal. She wasn't exactly... Socially accepted, being a half-demon and all. Neither demon or human would fully accept her. So Umi had to hunt for all her food, mostly fishing and small prey, cooking it on a fire afterward.

LaFarga noticed how antsy the girl in his grip seemed to be getting. She must be hungry or something. The girl seemed rather ragged; the smudges of dirt and such on her face and tattered clothes gave it away. She was probably desperate. "We're not here to eat. I have come to inform the castle officials of you. Stay in the hallway." He commanded as he opened the great door to the room and walked in, bowing slightly.

Umi remained in the hallway as told, and leaned up against the wall. What a silly thing to take a prisoner for! She could see a punishment if she /harmed/ someone. Well. Whatever.

A slight movement caught Mage Clef's eye in the hallway as LaFarga, the leader of one of the more powerful groups of men, walked in. But the mage had not yet made the connection with the demonic aura.

"LaFarga." Lantis, the commander of the whole army acknowledged, setting down his fork to talk to his partner.

"Sir, I have a captive with me. She seems to be very resistant and arrogant." The blonde man reported. Umi couldn't help but smirk from her spot in the corridor. That may have been a bit of an exaggeration. "One of my men also explained to me that he sensed a strange aura from her. He is one of the more powerful mages in my troop." Oh. So that's why they captured her. They were /suspicious/!

Fuu looked at Hikaru, both of them making the connection. Then, they glanced at Clef who had the same look of realization. "Bring this girl in." Clef commanded, making sure his staff was within reach for necessary defense.

Umi, of course, heard this so she waltzed in. "Hey." She didn't want to hurt humans, but that didn't mean she had to show /respect/.

"Girl, pull down your hood." He said with a monotone. He had to see if his hunch was correct.

"Nah, I'd rather not." She defied.

"You should, or else we will have to punish you for resistance." The lavender-haired mage threatened.

"Meh."

"Just do it." He replied a bit waspishly, fixing her with a wintry glare.

"Nah." The corner of her lip crept up into a smirk at his surliness. All because of her. She had heard that the master mage was known as an impeccably calm person.

Master Mage Clef was beginning to lose his temper, and the ones sitting near him could almost feel the crackling of lightning magic in the air around him. He didn't know why this one girl unnerved him. The mage stood up from his chair, staff at the ready.

King Ferio was torn between holding the Mage back or cheering him on. This girl rather annoyed him too. "That arrogant little..." He muttered under his breath before his wife's hand on his arm stopped him.

"Kind words." She whispered.

The half-demon noticed how tense the Mage was. Ironically, he seemed almost like a cat ready to spring. "Try me, Mage."

That was the last straw. A bolt of lightning hit near Umi's feet and she took off running around the dining room, a trail of near-misses following her.

One bolt almost hit Umi, so the only way to avoid it was to jump upwards. She had an impressive jump, being part cat. Umi did a lateral leap, twisting in the air just for show, and landed on the dinner table between the platters of food. The gaps between serving dishes were very small so her landing /was/ impressive.

The girl was being stared at with eyes as wide as dinner plates, more than one person flinching for their weapon. At first, her reaction was smug because of what a deal her performance made. Then, the expression fell off her face as she realized the change of temperature the sensitive skin on her ears felt. She closed her eyes with a pained expression for a fraction of a second, working one clawed hand free from her pocket to touch her head. Yep, her hood had flipped off.

"She's a demon!" A lady with pink hair and what seemed like a southern drawl declared. Clef gave a silent nod as his suspicion was confirmed.

All Umi could manage was a small fanged smile, knowing she would be attacked and the only way would be to fight her way out. She had to dodge quickly out of the way of a swing from LaFarga's heavy sword. Suddenly, a fire spell was launched at her, commanded by Hikaru. She jumped upwards yet again, flexing her claws in frustration. Umi didn't even draw her sword yet. "I don't want to hurt you!"

"Save it." Hikaru snapped, summoning red colored lightning that struck Umi's side. She normally wasn't so mean, but defending the castle was her job as a magic knight.

Umi hissed in pain. "I'm telling the truth." One ear twitched in irritation. She really wanted to draw her dragon-hilted sword. It would easily be able to take out everyone here. Except maybe for Hikaru, Fuu, and the Mage. "If I wanted to hurt you, I would have long ago."

"Then what are you doing here?" Clef asked calmly, staff held at the ready for attack. He had finally gathered his temper enough to keep his voice unwavering.

"Well..." Umi said in annoyance. "I was taken here! I didn't want to put up a fight because I would /kill/ you all!"

"You think highly of yourself, kitty." He taunted.

Umi held up one fist and flexed her claws. "You're asking for it. If you want me out of here because I'm a damn demon, fine I'm leaving-" She was cut off by a gasp from the Master Mage. "What?"

"A demonic aura."

"Have you forgotten I'm a demon so soon?" She asked in an incredulous voice, hopping off the table.

"No this one seems more evil than you."

"That's because I'm not evil!" Just then, a humongous fist crashed through the wall, grabbing Hikaru and Fuu in one easy swipe. The wall of the dining room was now a gaping hole, and both Umi and Clef ran toward it, forgetting the previous argument completely. Clef stood up straight and summoned a lightning bolt to damage the arm of the creature. Umi observed that the arm was made of brown, cracked mud that was half dried and covered in stone armouring.

"That won't work, idiot! It's made of rock and mud, you should know that." Umi hissed, jumping onto what was left of the wall. "Your attacks will all be grounded."

"You're the idiot! That's a twenty story drop!" He suddenly exclaimed. Clef couldn't help it, she was the age of Hikaru and Fuu. They were his students. He hated to admit it, but he was a bit concerned for the blue haired girl.

"I'm a cat demon, I live on balance and agility." She declared, jumping on top of the monster's clenched fist and sprinting up its arm, seaping from Rock plate to rock plate to keep her boots from sinking in the mud. She got the claws on her right hand ready. "IRON REAVER SOUL STEALER!" Umi's claws glowed and she stabbed a gaping hole into where the demon's heart should be. It stumbled back with a deep howl of pain and dropped the two girls in its fist. After that, it fell backwards and its flesh dissolved into dust, leaving bones behind.

Umi leaped off the arm as the flesh disintegrated, and dove into the air like it was water, leaving the horrified faces of the people still in the dining room looking over the edge. She got below Fuu and Hikaru, catching them on her back. With her free arm, she drew her sword and dug it into the wall, leaving a long scar in it, but the sword became wedged in the bricks so she was able to have a solid object to grip. "Hey, can you stop screaming? You're not falling anymore and I have really sensitive hearing." Umi asked irritably, wincing. She was clinging onto the hilt of the sword with her right hand and had both feet planted on the wall. The cat demon glanced down. A three story fall was left. It was perfectly survivable, for her anyway. "Hold on tight and just trust me, okay?"

Fuu and Hikaru glanced at each other and nodded. They really had no other choice. Umi let go of the sword and landed perfectly nimbly on her feet, bearing most of the shock, for the girls' sake. She lowered them to the ground.

"Thank you, Miss Cat Demon. I didn't catch your name." Fuu said politely, nodding her head slightly.

"I'm Umi." She replied shortly, looking up at her sword wedged in the wall and scratching her ear in puzzlement. "I have to get that somehow." She mused quietly. Fuu and Hikaru must have realized the extent of the fall they just took because they clammed up, eyes wide.

Just then, rushed footsteps revealed the very out of breath members of the dining room. Clef rushed to the two girls. They were his students after all.

"Are you two okay?" Both mutely nodded, Fuu biting her lip and Hikaru trembling slightly. "How could you let them fall?"

"Heh. I thought the demon would be stubborn and hold on longer. But they're safe, aren't they?" Umi replied, eyes flicking around, looking for a solution to the sword issue.

"I suppose so."

"And I slayed the demon." She pointed out, now looking him dead in the eye. Clef grunted agreement.

"Why in the world am I associating with you?"

"Because I'm not a bad demon, as I have proved?" She asked, a small fanged grin on her face. Umi wanted to have a place to lodge, instead of getting kicked out. But after that experience, it wasn't too likely.

"This doesn't prove anything."

"Well as you have seen, I could escape if I wished so. But I have vowed to myself not to hurt innocent humans. I don't like demons having a bad name, so I won't contribute to humans disliking us." Umi explained. She at least needed one person's trust to get in.

Just then Hikaru spoke up, voice still slightly trembling. "M-master Clef. I think she is being h-honest. I trust her." There's one. Fuu still couldn't find her voice, so she nodded her agreement. And two. Clef turned to stare at the girls.

"But she is a /demon/ we can't trust demons." He stated rather harshly. Umi nearly glared, but caught herself. She bit her tongue telling herself to be nice.

"There's something different about her though." Fuu said, finally finding her voice. "Her demonic aura isn't evil. It's... Unique."

"Clef, please don't discipline her!" Hikaru said, hugging the very surprised cat demon around the waist. "She saved us, /and/ slayed the demon. We owe her."

Normally, Umi would have pushed the girl away, but right now Hikaru was helping her case. So she let it go.

King Ferio went over to the slowly recovering Fuu and kissed her on the forehead. Fuu blushed raddish red and Umi and Hikaru started giggling at her reaction. "I'm not going to let anything like that happen again, my dear Fuu." He muttered to her, embracing her. She was shy in personality, therefore didn't like public affection by Ferio. But her lover was the extreme opposite.

"Fine, I suppose you can be lifted of charges. We will just call it even." Clef sighed and then smiled. "I think the girls even want you to /stay/."

Umi blinked and looked down at the redhead hugging her, who looked up nodding vigorously. Then she looked at Fuu, who pulled away from Ferio slightly and nodded also. "I... Suppose I could. But I'm making no promises to stay forever. I've lived on my own my whole life and that may not change so quickly." She replied, not wanting to commit fully even though he was jumping in giddy joy on the inside. Umi pulled off the outer cloak she was wearing since it was covered in mud and demon guts. Her sensitive nose really didn't find that particular scent pleasant. A mix of rotten meat, death, and fermented fruit? Bleh. She hoped /she/ didn't normally smell like that. Below her cloak, she was wearing a pair of black legging-like pants and a navy long sleeved shirt. Along with that was a black belt and some leather boots that fell silently as she walked.

Hikaru pulled away from hugging the cat demon and reached up to pet one of Umi's blue ears. Before she could, Umi slapped her arm away. (But not too hard.) "No one touches the ears." She said sternly with a small glare. Hikaru looked rather sad, but obeyed. "Sorry, that's the only thing I ask."

"It's alright, but your kitty ears are so cute!" Hikaru squealed.

"Um thanks?" Umi said, one of her ears turning to the side with embarrassment. At least she wasn't seen as hostile by those two. (Meaning the Queen and Hikaru.)

"Let's all go inside to finish our meal in a different room." Ferio suggested. Everyone agreed except Umi.

"I have to get that." She said, pointing at her sword wedged in the wall at least 60 feet up. Everyone turned to stare at the sword.

"How did it get up there?" The pink haired lady spoke up. She almost had a drawl to her dialect?

"I used it to slow our fall." Umi explained, climbing a nearby tree in a few leaps. She had planned how to get it earlier.

"What are you doing?" Master Mage Clef asked.

Umi turned an incredulous look on him. "I'm eating whipped cream to look like a rabid cat." She said sarcastically. "What do you think I'm doing? I'm getting my sword!" She leaped from the top of the tree, grabbing a windowsill two stories up. She planted her feet on the wall and slowly worked them up to the sill. Then she managed to leap all the way up to her sword. Umi grabbed the hilt and pushed off the wall to flip backwards, dislodging her sword in the same smooth motion. She landed on her feet back on the ground, unharmed. Everyone was staring at her. "What? I got it."

Clef shook his head. "Let's just go." He turned and began climbing the stairs with his black robes swishing behind. He was soon followed by the other people and then Hikaru, Fuu, and Umi walking in a trio.

"You're our new friend!" Hikaru announced childishly. Umi nodded, ears twitching in amusement.

"I would like to thank you again for saving us." Fuu stated, adjusting her glasses slightly.

Umi put her hands up in front of her. "Honestly, it was no trouble. A stunt like that is normal for me, even though it is a feat for humans." Umi figured she was meant to dine with them, since there were no objections. She then noticed her sense of smell wasn't as good as normal. She could smell the specific scents of all the people she was with, but not the birds in the trees outside or the grass scent like normal.

'Shit, tonight must be the new moon.' Umi thought. 'Just when I get a decent place to lodge.' The night of the new moon was the one time when she lost all demonic qualities and powers. Her appearance also drastically alters at this time. She would be considered a freak and not get accepted, most likely.

"Master Clef, I believe we could eat in the lounge room." Fuu suggested. "Since the dining room is... Ruined."

"I agree with Fuu." The king said.

"I suppose it is a plan then."

After many flights of stairs, the group came to a simple French double door of the colour white. Once opened, they walked into a comfortable lounge room.

Springy bamboo wood flooring was beneath their feet and the walls were painted a pale blue. The large window covering the whole east-facing wall gave a view of the crystal ocean from above. There was a black leather love seat, armchair, sofa, and a sectional surrounding a large glass coffee table with a stainless steel frame. The room mixed modern furniture with an island theme and it flowed very well.

Umi stood in the door gaping as the others moved to sit down. "What a beautiful view!" She squealed. "I absolutely /adore/ the water!"

"I thought cats were supposed to dislike water." The blonde Dal pointed out, settling into the sofa with the pink haired lady at his side. She later learned that the lady's name was Caldina.

"You see, that's being stereotypical... It is said that /all/ cats hate water, but I like it! So, I don't see a problem with it." The cat demon explained, making her way over to the area, her feet making absolutely no noise on the floor. But all of the spots were filled by the time she got there. Hikaru, Fuu, and Ferio sitting on the sectional and the raven haired commander in the armchair. That left only the love seat... She glanced over at it and it was already occupied by none other than the Master Mage.

'Just my luck..' She muttered in her mind sarcastically, grudgingly plopping down next to him. Umi would normally just sit on the floor, but that would be terribly awkward and make her seem like an animal. Oh wait, she was...

"I'll send for some food." King Ferio announced, flagging down a maid that had been passing in the hallway and delivering the message. She left with a quiet bow and scurried off.

About a quarter of an hour later, many dishes of food were brought in. Mostly veggies to Umi's dissapointment. One last server came in with a platter of salmon. "Special arrangements have been requested by the Master Mage for your... dietary needs." He explained, quickly dropping the plate in front of her and drawing away just as quickly. The poor guy must have thought she bites. Oh wait... She does!

She looked at the Mage and blinked a 'thank you' before accepting the plate in front of her on the table. Umi started devouring it, ears twitching happily, as the others began to eat. The twitching ears reminded Clef of his giant pet fish, Fyulla. Whenever the fish was pleased she would wave her flippers. 'I wonder what her ears feel like?' Clef wondered, then shook the unrelated thought away. 'But those ears are so cute...' Clef was an animal person. He had many creatures to summon at will including the said giant fish and a griffin.

"Does kitty like salmon?" Clef teasingly asked, giving into the temptation and reaching to pet one of Umi's cute blue ears, but she grabbed his wrist, sensing him.

"No touching the ears." She snapped, a bit of the pink fish on her mouth. He reached again.

"Oh, but you're just a sweet little kitty cat!" He cooed, knowing he was getting completely on his nerves.

"I'm not sweet /or/ little!" She snapped, setting her fork down so that she wouldn't fling it at the Mage.

Clef waited a few minutes and tried again when she had forgotten and wasn't looking or paying attention, absorbed in a conversation with Hikaru about the best type of food. "I love fish, but I think spaghetti is still my all-time favorite." Then, the mage started petting her ear and she turned abruptly. "I told you not to do tha- oooh." Her cat qualities started acting up and she started purring unconrollably. Her instincts made her snuggle up closer to his side. Umi kept purring loudly and started rubbing her face, ears, and head up against his side. And chest... And neck... Like an affectionate kitten, great! While her ear was pressed to his chest, she heard the rumbling of a chuckle and snapped out of it, pushing away abruptly.

"I told you not to..." Umi said, blushing bright red. "And /that/, people, is why you DON'T TOUCH MY EARS!" She yelled, moving to sit on the floor.

-.-.-.-.-

Other than the slight... mishap, the rest of the meal went along smoothly. Umi was introduced to the rest of the occupants of the room while she waited for everyone to finish their meals - Umi had finished hers in an eighth of the time it took the others to finish. But whenever the cat made eye contact with a certain lavender haired mage, she would advert her gaze angrily.

The cat demon kept casting nervous glances out the large window/sliding glass door. Since the room was west-facing, she would be able to tell how long until the sun sets. Her dreaded time.

Currently, the bright orange sun indicated about an hour until her transformation. She absolutely could NOT let anyone know about her weakness. Umi was plotting a way to get alone for the night, which she would stay awake the whole time. The half-demon didn't really feel completely trusting in her human form.

Lantis, Clef, and LaFarga were locked in a conversation about castle defense or something. It all seemed like technical jibber jabber to Umi... She waited for an opening to speak.

"Since we decided I will be staying for a while, where will I be sleeping?"

"...Are you sure she is okay to stay, Master Clef?" Lantis asked.

They began a rushed, whispered argument that nobody could hear. Even Umi's sensitive hearing could not understand because they were speaking so rapidly and her ears were more trained for natural noises. Well, that and the new moon had almost arrived.

"The two Magic Knights seem to trust her, and I trust their judgement very well." The Mage replied.

"But she is a /demon/! It is unsafe for every inhabitant of the castle and as the castle guard, I have to ensure their safety." Lantis said quickly, eyes flicking around. He wasn't used to talking this much to explain. The raven-haired man was normally a very quiet person.

"... I don't completely trust her either, Lantis. But she may be a good addition to our defensive team! You saw how she single handedly eliminated the monster."

"LaFarga, your opinion please?" Lantis beckoned towards his second-in-command, quickly explaining the situation.

The sturdily built man looked uncomfortable for once. "I agree that I don't feel completely safe... She is demon, after all."

Clef sighed. "I will keep a watch over her, if you wish..."

"She can stay for now..." LaFarga proposed. "I never confirmed anything about her helping with defense." Lantis nodded his agreement to the terms.

"It is settled then." Clef finished, then rose his voice. "Umi, you can stay... But only temporarily. Until we can decide a good place for you."

"Will I be given a place to sleep?" Umi asked hopefully.

"Of course! Why wouldn't you?" Ferio asked.

"I never have a dry place to sleep, that's all." That was the little explanation she was going to offer. Umi sighed quickly. "I accept."

-.-.-.-.-

Once dinner was over with, some kitchen boys came and collected the plates. The sun said that there was only about 30 minutes until the sunset. Umi had to hurry and get a place to sleep.

"So, where will I sleep?"

"We have no open bedrooms, so you may use this room... You are okay with sleeping on a couch, right?" Clef confirmed.

"Yeah, it's better than a tree." Umi said flatly, rolling her eyes.

"I will have one of the girls bring you clothes. You can clean up in that washroom over there. Unless... You don't wash yourself like a cat, do you?"

Umi laughed openly. "No!"

"Heh. Good because that would be strange." The Mage responded, clearing his throat awkwardly.

"Are you suggesting /I'm/ strange?"

"No, no. Sleep well anyway."

Umi smiled slightly. "Thanks."

She closed the door behind the Mage as he left.

The bluette decided that she had to shower quickly to get all of the dried mud off of her. It was clotting her hair together and crusted to her face. Just plain disgusting... She was part animal, but not completely savage!

After removing the mud, she dried off and found that someone had left clothing on the counter. A dark blue jacket top and a light blue pleated skirt, complete with black leggings and a small orange necktie. There was also a pair of loose navy pajama pants and a black tanktop, so she guessed the other outfit was meant for tomorrow. Umi donned the pajamas and once again entered the den-like room.

She paused to look at the sun and realized it was setting. Umi had to admit, the Cephiran sunset over the ocean was absolutely breathtaking! No time to admire it though. She was never planning on actually sleeping on the couch during this vulnerable time. The cat demon planned on getting on one of the horizontal beams supporting the ceiling before she lost her qualities. She stood balanced on the back of the couch and leaped up, grabbing the wooden beam and pulling herself up. Not the most efficient way to do it, but it worked. Just as she got up and sat down after balancing herself, the room darkened and a white light enveloped Umi. Once the glow disappeared, she was in her human form.

When in human form, the cat ears that were once emerging from her hair disappeared. Her hair darkened from light blue to a shade in between royal and navy blue, and her eyes changed from cerulean to a darker blue. The claws changed into human fingernails and toenails and she lost her heightened sense of smell and hearing, and her night eyesight isn't as good.

So, she planned to stay awake through the night. But somewhere along the way, she drifted off to sleep accidentally... What she didn't know was that Master Mage Clef was patrolling the hallways, casting out an aura scan to look for anything out of place.

Clef decided to investigate when Umi's demonic aura suddenly disappeared. He still sensed her though. Strange...

When the Mage knocked on the door, there was no answer because Umi was still asleep. "Umi are you alright?" He called through the door. He tried the knob and it was locked. Of course, the room was pitch black so he couldn't see through the glass door. "Umi?!"

No answer. Clef closed his eyes and cast a spell to unlock the door. He cautiously walked in. "Are you in here?"

The bluette finally woke with a start, falling off the support beam onto the wood floor, landing on her back.

"Unnmgh. That hurt." She muttered, not awake enough to realize she was in her human form in front of Clef.

The Mage's eyes widened. "U-Umi? Is that you?" He held his staff in between the girl and himself, just in case.

"Of course, you dimwit! How could you not-" She paused when she saw her hair colour. "recognize me... Oh."

Yes, that was Umi. No question about it. Only she carried that sharp tongue. He lowered the staff. "What happened?"

"It's nothing."

"This isn't /nothing/."

"It's nothing that concerns /you/." Umi snapped, sticking her nose in the air and crossing her arms.

"On the contrary, it does. As far as we are concerned, you are still a danger to us." Clef stated, gripping his staff to threaten.

With that comment, Umi finally snapped. "I wouldn't EVER hurt a human!" The descent into yelling was surprisingly fast.

"Why not? You're a demon and most are more than happy to harm us."

"BECAUSE I AM HALF HUMAN MYSELF!" She snapped loudly at him. Umi noticed what she admitted and calmed down a bit. "There... I said it."

"...You are?" She gave him an incredulous look that said 'would I be like this if I was full-demon?' At least, that is what she wanted the look to say.

"Yes. I'm a half-demon. That's why I'm human right now. It happens on the new moon."

"Why didn't you /tell/ us? What if you suddenly transformed and we attacked you because we didn't recognize you?" He asked incredulously.

Umi reached for the sheath that was leaning against the couch, holding her sword. "I have this." She drew the sword and for the first time, Clef could actually see what it looked like. The blade was finely crafted metal of some sort and the hilt was a blue dragon. That sword seemed very familiar to him.

"Where did you get that?" He asked, reaching out to grab it. As a reaction, Umi almost sliced his arm but stopped herself with a muttered apology.

"I found it... But I like to believe that it found me. One night I was defenseless because it was the new moon and was attacked by many, many monsters. I found this rapier leaning against a tree. The ground was muddy and there were no footprints leading to it, so it wasn't abandoned there... I used what ametuer knowledge I ha an was able to survive. Not unharmed though. I nearly bled to death that night because humans are such /slow/ healers. The strange thing is, the dragon on the hilt of my sword matches the one on the necklace my mother gave me. It was a gift to her from my father and she gave it to me before I left on my own..." She held the metal decoration up for Clef to see. "I always wear it because it is the last thing I have of my mother... It's very important to me."

"I'd imagine..." Suddenly, he snapped in realization. "I remember where I have seen that! It looks like an exact replica of a sword from a legend. Remind me to show you sometime." Clef suggested, trying to take her mind off of what seemed to be a touchy subject.

"Clef... Do me one favor?"

"Yes, Umi?"

"Keep my split blood a secret."

The Mage was obviously shocked. "They all are going to find out at some point."

"Well, please don't tell them. I have always kept a strong image and don't want that to change." She said, putting the sword back in its sheath, realizing she still had it out.

"I'm sorry but-"

"Please, Clef!"

Something about her eyes showed true kindness. Umi was not a bad demon, he determined. The Mage sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Fine. Is there anything else I should know about?"

"Something happens during the whole day of the full moon..."

"And what exactly is that?" He asked hesitantly.

"I turn um... Full cat."

"Like a house cat?" Umi knew where he was going with this. It was going to be another cute kitty comment.

"Yes, but I'm not as defenseless in that form. If need be, I can change into a saber toothed cat-type thing... It's really hard to explain."

"If we want to keep this a secret, you will need somewhere to hide. But there is only one place I can think of that has enough wards to keep people from sensing your change in aura." The Mage hesitated.

"And that is...?"

"Erm... My room." He coughed awkwardly again.

"No way, Mage! There is ABSOLUTELY no way!" Umi screamed at him.

"Do you want my help or not?"

"You PERVERT!"

Before she knew it, Umi had a piercing headache from getting hit from the wooden staff he always carried. "I am NOT A pervert!"

"If I had my claws right now, I swear on my ears that I would tear you to shreds!" Umi threatened, flexing the fingers of a clawless hand as if she still had claws.

"Well you don't! And why is that? You are HUMAN! That is why you need my help!"

Umi gave up and muttered something that he didn't quite hear.

"What?"

"Fine... And thank you..."

"You're welcome, Umi... Now, do you want me to leave you here or should we teleport to my quarters? It's too much of a risk to walk the hallways like-" He motioned to her human form. "This."

"We can go, I suppose..." With one last thought, she snatched the clothes they had left her for the morning. He grabbed onto her elbow and a prickly and cool sensation melted over her as the teleportation began. Before she knew it, they were in the Mage's room.

"Hope you don't mind sleeping on the floor..."

"I'm used to it." She muttered.

"Here's a pillow and some blankets, sleep well." The Mage said, dropping the said items on the floor and crossing half the room to his bed, clothes magically changing with a lazy wave of his left hand. He was now wearing a pair of grey pajama pants along with a black tee shirt. Clef removed his coronet and placed it on a table, after leaning his staff against the post of his bed.

"Good night, Umi." He muttered, glancing over to where he had left her.

To his surprise, Umi just curled up completely on top of the pile of blankets, head resting on the pillow.

"Good night, Clef." She said groggily, almost asleep.  
His curiosity got the best of him. "Um... What are you doing?"

"Trying to get some sleep, but a certain mage won't let me." She hissed irritably.

"I mean, aren't you going to set the blankets up?"

"Ungh. Curiosity killed the cat. I still behave like a cat even if I'm not at the moment. Get used to it."

Clef chuckled at her irritability. "Alright good night."

All he got in response was her slowed breathing. 'Why do I trust this perfectly strange demon?' He mentally asked himself as he crawled into bed and turned out the candle with a flick of his hand. 'You know what... I trust her. It's my gut feeling.' With that thought, he drifted off to sleep.

Sent from my iPod


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I will not repeat this throughout the chapters but I mean it for all of them. I do not own Magic Knight Rayearth and any of the associated characters or Inuyasha. Don't sue me because all you would get is... *rummages in pocket* A student ID card, a highlighter, and... A quarter... Yeah. Also I would really like it if CLAMP gave Cleffy to me but... No.**

**-Walks in, waving like a princess- Hello, my friends! I have chapter two ready! It took a couple of rewrites but I think it is finally how I want it to be. **

**Also, I think I might have part of an actual /plot/ in mind! -dances around happily-**

**I should probably write down a plot line so this story, but oh well! It's stored safely in my noggin! -taps head-**

**Here you go! Enjoy! **

* * *

The Master Mage woke to a sharp ray of orange sunlight cutting across the pillow. He groaned and turned over, pulling the duvet over his head and trying to go back to sleep. No use. Clef sighed and rolled rather ungracefully out of bed, shivering. The morning Cephiran air was chilly, yet refreshing.

He snapped and within a second, Clef had donned his robes. At least the heavy layers made up for some lost warmth. When the Mage glanced over at the pile of blankets where Umi was sleeping, she was gone and the blankets were folded nicely.

"Did you run away on us, Umi?" He muttered. "Wouldn't doubt it..." Just to be sure, he casted an aura scan for her clear blue aura. 'On the roof?' He thought when he got the results back. 'How the hell did she get up there?' Only highly ranked officials had rooftop access. The holders of the keys. 'Better go check.'

-.-.-.-.-

Umi was laying on her side, her blue gaze casting over the Cephrian land. 'So beautiful.' She thought, grateful for this new vantage point she found. Her ear twitched to the side as she heard the metal door leading from the stairway whine open.

"Umi what are you doing up here?" Came the Master Mage's calm voice.

"Just thinking. Enjoying the sunrise."

"I see you've changed back." He commented.

"Yep. Happens at dawn." Was her short explanation.

"Just /how/ did you get up here?"

"Went out the balcony. Then jumped on ledges, window sills, et cetera. I needed a calm place to sort my thoughts out." Umi responded, pulling herself to a sitting position, legs dangling over the edge. "Join me?"

"Why not? Breakfast will be in a while." He sat down next to her, but a bit farther from the edge. "A penny for your thoughts?"

"Just all of /this./" She said making a wild gesture indicating the situation she was in. "For a while, I was all alone. I had no allies, trusted no one. A wanderer, if you will. Fended for myself, hunted if that term doesn't gross you out."

"Not at all, really." The Mage replied, staring at the sun rising over the Cephiran terrain.

"That surprises me. No one ever accepts me; demon nor human. I'm shunned for being a /half-breed./" She spat out the word. "Not even my own litter mates accepted me. They were each full-demons and I was always kicked out of the way and malnourished." Her ears drooped as she recalled the memory. Clef made a sound to continue. "Then I heard a voice in my dreams. A rather deep voice, really. Almost godly. I was on the verge of death when it told me I had to be a fighter to survive. Now and always. It told me life wasn't going to be easy, but eventually, if I work hard enough, it will pay off. While the others were still being fed by mother, I started fending for myself at a very young age. I ate berries until I could rebuild my strength, then learned to hunt by watching the wildcats in my area. Eventually, I got fed up with all the snide remarks from my brothers and just left. I felt bad for leaving mother, but I haven't seen her since then. She gave me the necklace father gave to her to remember her by. This dragon necklace." Umi said, reaching up to her collarbone make old it between her index finger and thumb. "And then there was a forest fire at the woods that was our home... Every tree completely scorched. I found our old den and..." She couldn't continue for she was crying. "I'm sorry." Umi sobbed out, shivering from the memory.

Clef stood up, removing the outer layer of his cloak and draped it over he shoulders. "You don't have to tell me if it was that bad..." He murmured, sitting back down. He moved closer to her this time in reassurance.

The heavy fabric putting weight on her shoulders was comforting. She grabbed the edges of the cloak and pulled them closer to her. "No, it will be better if I get this out... I've never actually told anyone. I always lived solo. But anyway, when I got to our den I found my mother's dead and scorched body along with my brothers'. And my human father I never actually met..."

"Umi... I didn't know you had it so rough." Clef whispered solemnly.

She tried to act tough but her sobs betrayed that. "It taught me to be stronger in the end."

Clef embraced her comfortingly. "It's alright. Everything's fine now..."

"But it was so /scary/! I was only a kit and I discovered my family's corpses... It haunts me to this day. I have survivor's guilt." She sobbed into his shoulder.

"Umi... /We/ can be your new family. In case you haven't noticed, Fuu and Hikaru have taken a liking to you. I don't think they care about your DNA. You know what? I can ensure you a position on the castle guard. You can be trained in swordsmanship by the greatest swordsman - who happens to be Lantis. If you want, I can even train you in magic."

Umi sniffed a bit, trying to hold tears back. "B-But why? You don't have to do all this for me..."

"I have realized that you're not a bad demon, simply misunderstood. And I will tell you one thing. You /are/ a fighter. Both physically and emotionally."

"Thanks Clef, but I feel as if you, Fuu, and Hikaru are the only ones who trust me. Even somewhat trust me." Umi said. "How can I be a part of a family, if not trusted?"

"Everyone will warm up to you, promise. Trust me."

"Actually, I've /never/ trusted anyone before." She said a bit sharply. Clef looked slightly hurt. "But... I think I finally do trust someone." Umi muttered, burying her face in his shoulder once again. She giggled a bit. "Sorry I dumped all this on you."

"You just needed to vent. It's all fine and well." He assured. "Do you want to get cleaned up before breakfast? A cool rag or something for your eyes?"

She sat up and nodded. "Please."

Clef stood up and offered a hand to help Umi to stand, then she got cleaned up and he escorted her back to her room which now doubled as the dining room.

-.-.-.-

"Umi where were you? When we got here this morning, you weren't here!" Hikaru nearly shouted.

Umi walked over to the love seat and patted Hikaru's head on the way. "Calm yourself, I was just outside getting some fresh air. It felt so stuffy in here."

"Miss Umi, wasn't it too cold out?" Fuu asked, taking the seat next to Umi.

Umi silently thanked Fuu for sitting next to her so she didn't have a repeat of yesterday's event. "You forget that I've lived outdoors all my life."

"You did? I thought you would at least have some shelter." Ferio commented, sitting on the couch. Clef sat next to his former student.

"I was always shooed away because I had no money." She told them as LaFarga and Lantis strolled in, chatting about some military strategy or something.

"Caldina will be here in a moment... She has to get her makeup ready." LaFarga announced. He seemed rather annoyed about the makeup. "She said to start without her."

"No, we can wait for her. It's only proper." King Ferio said, propping his feet up on the coffee table from his spot on the sectional.

"Speaking of proper, feet off the table mister!" Umi joked. She liked the fact that even though the people there were royalty and very important people, they were all relaxed. She was sure they could appear very regal if they needed to...

"I can do anything I want." Ferio said firmly.

"Whatever, I can sense Caldina's almost here." Clef said, shoving Ferio's feet off the table.

"And I can smell her perfume. Talk about overpowering." Umi muttered so that she was sure Caldina didn't hear.

"I'm here y'all! How's breakfast?" Caldina announced, slipping into the room.

"We waited for you." Umi commented.

"Awh you didn't hafta do that!"

"It was only proper. Can I have the same thing as yesterday?" She asked to no one in particular. She wasn't exactly sure who to ask.

"We had something similar prepared for you. It must be boring eating the same thing all the time." Ferio told her.

"Beats feild mice..." Umi muttered, glancing at Clef when she saw him give her a sympathetic look. She just shrugged, showing him it was no big deal.

Then, a flurry of maids came in, carrying a few large silver serving dishes above their heads and placing them on the large coffee table. Chopsticks were given to each diner along with napkins. They must have known what each person usually had, because each got a specialty drink. And Umi got a glass of milk... How steriotypical! Oh well, no sense in getting flustered over it. Plus... She actually rather enjoyed the stuff.

Umi's meal consisted of some lamb, tuna, and some various steamed vegetables on the side. And don't forget the glass of milk. After wolfing (or would it be catting?) down her meat and fish, Umi started lapping up the milk with her tongue. When she looked up she got many confused stares. And Clef was looking over the rim of the glass as he took a sip to hide his smile. But the method wasn't very affective because the smile was touching his eyes.

She offered a smile. "Sorry... Instincts. I never really applied manners."

"Don't worry, Ms. Umi. Just follow our examples and stick to it." Queen Fuu told her.

Clef looked up from his meal, fringe swaying as he did so. "Everyone, I have a proposition."

"And what is that, Mage Clef?" Ferio asked.

"I would like to get Umi a position on the castle guard..." He trailed off, blue eyes flicking about, waiting for some kind of reaction.

"But she's a demon! Is that even allowed?" Caldina asked suddenly.

"I don't see anything wrong with it. As I have observed and I'm sure many of you have also noticed, Umi has abilities that normal humans do not have. She could be useful."

"Is it me, Madoushi, or do you have a soft spot for this girl?" LaFarga asked rather harshly. He still wasn't used to the idea of a demon running freely about the castle.

"Did she /ever/ do anything with intention to hurt us? Umi did not even draw her sword on us when we were unjustly attacking her for being demon. She also expressed to us her self-promise to not harm innocent humans." Clef reasoned, a slight touch of pink on his cheeks. No one decided to point it out, Clef was in one of his ranting moods. He never really answered LaFarga's question, he just creatively dodged it.

"Can you guys stop talking about me as if I'm not here?" Umi interjected. They all paused to look at her.

"I say we let her on the guard." Hikaru proclaimed suddenly.

"I second the notion." Fuu said softly.

"You two also have soft spots for the demon!" LaFarga stated a bit fiercely.

"Not soft spots, we just trust her." Hikaru challenged, towering brilliantly for one so short. And sitting down. Fuu nodded her silent agreement.

"See, the two Magic Knights and the Master Mage agree. That must be enough." Clef said, eyes flashing towards the tall blonde Dal.

Ferio left it to them to work this out. He didn't want to use kingly power in this decision.

"So long as she passes the proper tests, I say we let her in." Lantis calmly stated, face completely emotionless and eyes tranquil. But somehow his eyes dared LaFarga to go against him.

The Dal sighed, slightly tilting his head down in submission. "I agree so long as I get to choose her tests."

"Fine by me." Umi said confidently.

"So it is decided. Umi will be tested for a guard position this evening. LaFarga, you get to prepare the tests and the people who will test her. If everyone is done with their meals, they are dismissed. Anyone may watch Umi's audition this evening." King Ferio concluded, standing up and leaving. On the way out he muttered to Umi, "Don't expect to get in easily. LaFarga seems to have something against you, but I'm not sure what."

"Thanks, Ferio. I will be fine." Umi replied.

"See ya at the testing!" Then, he whipped around, cape snapping and left.

Everyone had left, except Umi made sure Clef stay behind. "Thank you for doing this."

"It's nothing big. You are a good person. Er... Demon? Anyway, I think everyone trusts you except for LaFarga. And because of that, Caldina is wary. They will eventually see. Now, you can prepare for your testing. I have some studies to do in my library." Clef replied, robe swishing on the floor as he turned to leave. With that, he briskly walked out the door.

-.-.-.-

A group had gathered in the courtyard of some of the best soldiers and the audience. LaFarga also had some others hidden.

"First off, we will test your sword skill. Summon your armour." LaFarga announced. "I will have you spar some of my best swordsmen."

"I don't have armour, but that's how I roll." Umi said, drawing her sword and pointing it at the first in line.

The sturdily built man charged at her. If she was hit, she would be sent flying because of her light weight. At just the right time, she leaped and did a front flip over the top of him. Umi flicked the sword out of his hand on the way and had the blade of the sword up against the back of his neck in the blink of an eye. The other seven were just as handily defeated, none being actually harmed by the demon.

Umi was still in perfect condition, eyes bright and ears flicking happily. "What's next?"

"Lantis."

The said magic swordsman strode up, cape billowing behind him. He looked utterly confident. "You don't know any sort of magic, do you?"

"No, only my claws... Throw everything you have at me." Umi challenged. "Those previous tests were way too easy."

Lantis agreed with a nod. "Lightning call!"

A humongous, charged blast rocketed toward Umi. She jumped vertically and landed ten feet up on the observation deck's rail. Using it like a balance beam, she did a couple cartwheels to dodge the next attack, then leaped off. She did a couple twists in the air, before sticking the landing. "And dismount." The bluette said jokingly, before dodging Lantis as he charged at her. She sheathed her sword, to keep it out of the way.

Umi planned on letting her opponent's stamina run out. Little did she know that Lantis had one of the best magic staminas other than the Master Mage himself. Umi kept stepping out of the way of the swordsman's strikes, hands behind her back and an amused expression on her face. As one blow almost struck her head, she grabbed the blade with her claws and yanked it out of his hands. She tossed it into the air, flipping it so she could catch the handle. Umi held the side of his own blade to his neck. "Accept defeat."

"I accept." Lantis said, sighing. She handed the sword back and grinned at LaFarga.

"My next challenge?"

"I guess you passed considering Lantis is our best swordsman." LaFarga considered, looking dumbfounded. She looked around and everyone had the same expression.

"What's wrong, guys?"

"I've never seen someone fight with finesse... It was almost dancing." Master Clef noted.

"That was AMAZING!" Hikaru exclaimed, clapping. Umi rubbed the back of her head modestly.

"How were you able to keep footing on the rail? The metal is only about two inches wide, therefore relatively impossible to do what you did on." Fuu analyzed.

"Cat-like agility?"

"The next matter is getting you a uniform." LaFarga interrupted.

"I just need some flexible fabric and-" Something had caught her off guard because she fell silent. Umi felt a warm fluid dripping down her back and smelled her own blood. She whipped around and saw a demon with blades protruding from its arms and legs and forehead... Pretty much everywhere. It held up one arm and reloaded the spike cannon.

"Leave us be!" Clef shouted, getting between Umi and the monster. If she was injured, she couldn't fight... Could she?

"Request denied. Jewel of Four Souls requested." The /thing/ answered in a metallic, ringing voice. It then moved quicker than Clef could react and swung its elbow blade to catch the mage in the throat. But Umi was quicker. Before anyone could see her, /she/ was in between Clef and the demon, sword keeping its arm at bay. She hissed at the thing like a cat and then hit it across the head with the flat of her sword.

"Whatever you want from us, you're not getting it!" Umi lured the metal demon away by climbing up the castle wall. The thing followed, using its blades as climbing spikes.

"Umi, what the /hell/ are you doing?" Ferio shouted up at her. She ignored the question because, frankly, she was a bit busy.

From there, it was a test of speed. Once on the roof of the castle, she waited on the edge to ambush the thing. Then a metal chain grabbed her ankle, yanking her off the edge. She plummeted rapidly towards the earth, but at last second she twisted and landed on her feet, knees buckling. The bluette collapsed to her knees from lack of blood. She glanced about, looking for the metal thing and found it smashed on the ground. The twist to land on her feet had knocked it off balance, crashing it. Another thing caught her eye though... Licking bright orange flames and fireballs being strewn about. The thing had brought /backup/.

Hikaru was trying to fight fire with fire, and utterly failing. Lightning was no better, so Clef switched to one of the only water spells he knew. And that one spell was way too weak to take on this monster. When she got a good look at the thing, she realized it was made of lava and hot rocks. Fuu was attempting to blow out the fire with blasts of wind, but the oxygen only fueled it.

The two magic knights gave up and ran a bit away from the scene. "Master Clef, just save yourself. You are the only one who knows water spells! You have no chance against this thing." Just then, a trio of flaming boulders hit the girls and the said mage, knocking them to the ground. The monster towered over the mage as his face paled.

/Gather your strength, Umi. You are better than this simple back injury./ Umi told herself. She clambered up to her feet, blood now having completely stained the back of her shirt. With a running start, as the creature was about to seriously scald Clef, she knocked it down. Umi rolled on top of it, pinning it down, uncaring of the flames licking at her skin.

'Umi.' That voice... It was the deep one from the dream. 'Thou hast proven the strength and bravery of your heart.' Piercing gold eyes appeared in her mind. 'Use thy power to saved your beloved friends. The words shall come to you at times of need.' The image dissapeared and she shook her head clear, focused on the pinned creature. She stood up, not even noticing her clothes on fire.

"Water Dragon!" A wicked dragon of water clashed into the lava creature, hardening it into rock. Clouds of steam plumed from the site.

Once the three people had extinguished their clothes - which had caught fire at the very edges - and the steam cleared, they looked for the form of their cat demon friend.

Once Umi saw that her friends were okay, she collapsed to her knees in pain and exhaustion. She knew her injuries would heal quickly enough... Demons healed differently. Then she fell forwards and was faced down in the dirt, unable to move her arms to cushion the impact. Umi's hearing dulled and her vision darkened around the edges, near passing out. She felt a tingling sensation on her left hand... Odd but she didn't elaborate on that. Her friends were running towards her, Clef and Fuu already preparing their healing spells. Hikaru helped her to her feet and Umi was ashamed that she had to lean heavily on the girl.

Much pain was relieved as the two powerful healing spells washed over her. "Thanks guys."

Lantis walked up then. All of the spectators and soldiers had left the magic persons to deal with the issue. Lantis made sure to get non-magicians out safely. "I thought you couldn't use magic."

"The voice talked to me. It said something about strength of heart. Then the words came to me." Everyone but the Master Mage looked at her like she had three heads.

"I'll explain later. I will go get this sorted out with Umi. Here, wear this." The Mage explained, taking off his outer cloak and giving it to her.

"What's this for?" Umi asked, accepting the cloak and pulling it over her shoulders.

"Your clothes... Aren't in the best condition?"

Umi looked down then blushed bright red, pulling the cloak really tight around herself. There were only scraps of clothes left - luckily they were covering what was necessary. But ONLY what was strictly necessary. "Stupid fire." She muttered to cover her embarrassment. Everyone laughed at her discomfort.

Clef cleared his throat. "Let's get you some new clothes and then get something for those injuries. We weren't able to completely heal them."

"Kay. Let's just go..." Umi said, scurrying off.

"Funny how a little embarrassment crashes her huge ego." The Master Mage muttered, also taking off.

-.-.-.-

Footsteps were clacking down the hallway; one pair of boots and another pair of bare feet. Umi had ditched her boots since they were singed so much the rubber was deformed. "I won't need the other healing... Demons heal quicker."

"Okay but you need some... Ahem... Clothes."

"Of course. Please stop mentioning it." Umi hissed, making sure the cloak was tight around her.

"What, does it embarrass you?" The Mage poked further.

"Of course it does! Enough of this teasing me, you should be thanking me instead." She angrily said, crossing her arms under the robe. "For saving you."

"Oh... Thanks..." He said, forgetting completely that she had sacrificed her own health to save him.

"You're welcome." She said curtly. There was then an awkward silence hanging over the air.

"So what did the voice say?" The pale haired Mage asked to break the silence.

"It told me that I had a brave and true heart and that I needed to save my friends. So I guess a water spell came to me. I didn't know I had the ability to use magic. I saw golden eyes and once they disappeared, I was able to use the water dragon spell."

Clef nodded, a sneaking suspicion growing. "We are here. This is the castle guards' wardrobe. You can pick anything from here."

"Thanks." She said, before padding off to examine the threads.

There were some that were a more silky fabric that seemed not suited for fighting. More for a formal situation, she guessed. After sorting through many fabrics, coarse and thin, she found some navy pants that seemed free moving, yet form fitting. They resembled leggings, almost. She also discovered a baby blue tank top that seemed to work, allowing free movement of her shoulders. Umi donned the items quickly then threw away the charred 'clothes' that she previously wore.

-.-.-.-.-

"My Fuu, are you okay?" Ferio asked, carrying her to the medical center.

"Ferio, I can walk, you know..." She muttered, bothered by all the attention.

"I know but look at your burns! They should be healed immediately so that they won't scar." He explained.

Fuu ignored her lover. "I sure hope Umi is okay, she lost a lot of blood."

"Don't fret, my love." He said, placing a comforting kiss on her forehead. "She's made of tougher stuff than we probably know."

-.-.-.-.-

Umi picked up the robe and walked back to the waiting Mage around a couple of corners. "Ready."

She handed the Mage the robe with her left hand and Clef looked extremely shocked, snatching her hand and letting the robe drop to the floor. He examined the back of her hand. "What is this?" He asked, tapping something hard on the back of her hand.

She stated at it in wonder. It seemed to be a sapphire implanted in the back of her hand. It was a roundish triangular shape... It seemed familiar somehow. "Dunno."

"It's an ovum gem-" He was about to say more when Umi cut him off.

"If you knew what it was, why did you ask?" She snapped, snatching her hand back and putting it on her hip.

"This is /important/, Umi. Hikaru and Fuu also have these." He said, removing her hand from her hip and examining the gem. So /that's/ where she saw it... The seriousness in his voice slapped her in the face telling her to listen. "Umi... You are a magic knight."

* * *

**So how did you like it? I left you on a cliffhanger! XD I LOVE those things! What will Umi's reaction be? Stay tuned!**

**Also, please support the YouTube videos I worked on. You can do so by simply watching and commenting. I would really appreciate it! Search 'Umi Ryuuzaki LaLa Land' and look for the one by Umi Ryuuzaki. (it should be pretty easy to find.) Also check out my other AMV's too! **

**Ja ne!**

**Water Dragon's Wing**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter three. This one just kept wanting to change about. One moment it was sounding great, but the next it wanted a flashback. Oi. I would liketo thank Ceresko Amou and Flor03 for their help an support. (Especially Ceresko for helping me dodge the writer's block bullet.) There will be one OOC Clef scene but that is just because Umi affects him that way! XD Anyway, enjoy! And if you would please, check out my blog at **  
**Www. Waterdragongirl . Blogspot .com**  
**(remove the spaces.) **  
**Arigato gozaimasu! Without further ado, chapter THREE!**

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"I'm a...?" Umi replied in shock. She looked down at the gem in her hand, then back up to Clef's face. He had a very serious expression. "You're... Not kidding..." She stuttered hesitantly.

"No, I would never joke about something so serious." He replied, dropping her hand. Clef whirled around and started pacing, dragging his hand through his hair. "How could this /happen?/" He muttered to himself. "She's a /demon/ for spirits' sake."

"Heard that." She commented flatly and he whirled back to her and blinked. "I'm human too, remember? I have feelings. I'm not an emotionless killer!" she snapped, doubting herself for thinking that he understood her.

"No, you're not." The confirmation calmed her slightly. "It's just... The Magic Knights are supposed to be pure, if that makes sense." Clef started to explain, looking her dead in the eye, a pensive expression setting in as he explained.

"If anything this proves my pureness of heart." She interrupted hotly. "Now people /have/ to trust me, right?"

He ignored her and kept going. "I assumed this meant pure blood too. But you were deemed worthy by the God Selece. Honestly, I don't know how the citizens of Cephiro will accept this. A demon as one of their rulers? Surely there is the chance of outrage..." Now she saw what he meant. It must be /unseemly/ to be working with a demon. She refused to get angry at him. It was him who was the first to accept her for who she was anyway.

Umi snatched a hat that resembled a beret off a nearby hook and put it on, covering her ears. "Well, what if they never knew I am a demon?" She questioned, whirling around to face the curious mage.

He paused for a moment, pondering it. "You might just be a mastermind, Umi." Clef smiled.

"Why thank you." The bluette replied, curtsying theatrically.

Clef smiled a bit, planning something to cheer her up from the brief hurt. He couldn't help but take the blame for causing it, even if she often jumps to conclusions. "What if the hat were to, say, blow away?" He asked, snatching the hat and taking off down the corridor. Umi blinked in shock, then shook her head, beginning to sprint after him. That was /extremely/ out of character for the normally stoic Guru. When he looked back over his shoulder to see how far behind she was, Umi wasn't there. When he looked back the correct direction, a lithe form dropped in front of him. She took the hat back from his hand and put it back on.

This startled the Mage very much. He gasped. "You have to stop /doing/ that."

"Nice try, Mr. Mage. But you can't outrun me." She smirked. "Unless you just so happened to be a secret half-demon too. Then, you /might/ have a chance." She began giggling.

He switched back into serious mode, just realizing how childish he acted. He was the /Madoushi/, spirits wept! Her giggle was kind of cute though... "We have to tell the others immediately. At least the other two knights."

"I suppose." She muttered in thought, sad that he came to his senses already. 'What am I thinking?' Umi asked herself. "Follow me, I know where they are."

"How could you possibly...?"

"I know their scents. I may not have amazing tracking abilities like a dog, but my nose is pretty good. I could also go by hearing, too." The Water Knight explained, beginning to walk the direction she smelled her friends in.

"Impressive." He commented, nodding and following the cat demon whose nose was twitching as she pinpointed the other knights' scents.

The two found the Fire and Wind Knights lounging in the gardens, exchanging stories. "Greetings, Magic Knights." Clef said as he walked in the room. He startled them a bit, but they recovered quickly enough.

"Hey Clef."  
"Hello, Clef-San."

"We have a new... Discovery and we thought you two should know first." He began, then hesitated.

Hikaru, completely off topic asked, "What's with the hat, Umi?"

"You will know in due time." She responded, making sure to keep her hands behind her back, hiding the ovum gem that would give her away. "You see... Remember that spell I learned to defeat those fire demons?" They nodded for her to continue. "It turns out that I have a guardian... Of sorts. And that spell was given to me by him. By Selece."

"The Rune God? Like in the legends?" Hikaru asked.

"That would have to mean..." Fuu had put it together.

"Yes." Umi confirmed, revealing the gem.

"But how? You're a demon! That's impossible!" Hikaru exclaimed. "They are foul beasts!"

"That has to be some sort of blasphemy!" Fuu hissed in shock.

Umi's eyes widened, starting to glisten with the beginnings of tears, which she wiped away impatiently. "I /thought/ that you, of all people, would understand. But I guess not." She snapped. "Just because I'm a nasty demon, everyone doesn't trust me! They think I can't have ANY brains at all, and that I'm foul scum! That's what has /always/ happened. Everyone thinks I'm disgusting and worthy of absolutely /nothing/!" She noticed her emotions starting to get over the edge and charged out of the room. Anywhere isolated would do. So, she climbed to the rooftop once again. Her personal sanctuary. The whole way up, she was fighting her inner demon to not come out. Once her inner demon took over, she could not recognize friends from enemies. Anyone could get attacked.

Back in the gardens, the two knights sat there in shock. "I think you two should fix this yourselves... Check the rooftop." He advised. He planned on following anyway, to make sure everything was okay. But the Mage wanted to give them a few minutes, to try to solve it themselves.

"Thank you, Clef." Fuu and Hikaru exchanged a glance. They shared a joint suspicion that this was do to Umi's overreaction to hormones. Fuu shrugged and they jogged to the entrance to the rooftop. Once there, Fuu pulled out her bronze key and unlocked the door with a loud /click/ and used all of her force to push the heavy door open.

"Umi, you up here?" Hikaru called, stepping out after Fuu. A blustery wind came by, forming goosebumps on her arms.

They heard labored breathing from the other side of the roof, along with various wild grunts as Umi tried to keep the demon contained. "Don't... Don't come any closer." She hissed in pain. The demon was trying to fight its way out. "I-I might hurt you."

"Umi-chan!" Fuu exclaimed, running forward to her and grabbing her arm gently. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings..."

Umi's eyes flickered red for a moment. "I said... Stay away!" She growled, teeth bared at them.

"No, we are staying right by your side. You're our friend and we hurt you. We want to make it up to you." Hikaru explained, taking a step closer.

"I said... AWAY!" Umi's eyes glowed red and her pupils blue, her fangs and claws also extending. She lashed out at the nearest person, who happened to be Fuu. She cried out, holding the deep gash in her cheek, crimson blood spilling to the floor.

"Umi! What are you doing?" Hikaru cried, rushing to Fuu's aide. She summoned her sword, just in case. Before they knew it, Umi was sprinting toward them on all fours. She pounced on Hikaru, pinning her down and hissing in her face. The only thing keeping the cat at bay was Hikaru's sword between them. Umi hissed in the redhead's face and the rooftop door flung open, revealing Clef.

"Umi, what the HELL are you doing!" He yelled, rushing towards the scene. The momentary distraction from a familiar voice made Umi look towards him and Hikaru was able to thrust her sword upwards to throw the girl off. She scrambled up and got in front of Fuu, to defend her.

"Hikaru, you do not have to protect me." Fuu said confidently, summoning a bow and a sheath of arrows to hand. Fuu had the choice between the two types of weapons to summon. The other one was a greatsword that was evolved by her and made of the mineral escudo, part of the legend. She quickly positioned an arrow and tensed the string, ready to fire. Hikaru stepped to the side. Now, Umi was surrounded on three sides so she drew her sword, growling nastily. Her face was contorted into a snarl, razor sharp fangs bared.

"I've read about this before!" Clef shouted over the roar of the wind. "Umi's inner demon came out! The normal Umi has no intention to hurt you! It happens under times of extreme negative emotion and when her life is in danger!" He held his staff at the ready.

Umi launched toward him next, too fast for him to summon a shield. Instead, he pushed her away with the handle of his staff. She landed on all fours, dropping her sword for the moment. Again, she tried to tear at him. He called a short blast of lightning to send her away again. "Umi, calm down!" He shouted desperately.

Fuu launched an arrow at her and it hit her in the side, distracting her from trying to hurt the Mage. Umi faked like she was going to pounce at Fuu, then turned around and lashed at Clef instead. He threw up an arm to block since he wasn't expecting it and his arm got clawed, blood dripping to the floor.

Clef then had an idea, holding the gash somewhat closed. "We don't mean to hurt you, Umi." He spoke to her calmly. He dropped his staff to show no sign of aggression. "Girls, drop your weapons too." He instructed.

Hikaru's sword clattered to the ground and Fuu set down her archery equipment hesitantly.

"See? We don't want to hurt you." He soothed, advancing slowly towards her, one step at a time, hand outstretched. Umi's snarls lessened in harshness. Once he was within a foot, Clef enveloped the girl in an embrace. As a reaction, she yowled in surprise and dug her claws deep into his arms, leaving deep puncture wounds. By then, red blood stains were all over their clothing. Eventually, with the comforting embrace, her grip loosened and her eyes faded back to their normal colour.

"I'm s-sorry... Clef." She croaked before going limp in his arms, forehead against his shoulder.

"How did you know how to get to her?" Hikaru asked, letting her sword cascade back into her gem.

"I guess she just knows me better..." Clef replied, picking up the unconscious girl into his arms. "I think when she freaks out like that, it takes too much energy to handle, so she fell unconscious." He pondered. "Is the water knight's room ready?"

"I think it is suitable." Fuu responded, reaching out to brush a lock of the bluettes hair out of her face. "We should probably heal her, she is loosing a lot of blood."

"Prepare your spell." Clef instructed, focusing his own healing energy into her. A soft blue light crept over her body from where his hands were placed. Since he was holding the girl, he couldn't gesture. Fuu added her healing winds and the wound sealed shut eventually. Both magicians were out of breath.

"I must be very out of practice." Fuu commented, breathing raggedly.

"I think it is more challenging to heal a demon." Clef replied. "I myself don't have much energy left. Do me a favor, Hikaru, and carry my staff and Umi's sword. Lead us to the magic knights' wing."

The redhead bent down and picked up the staff. When she attempted to pick up Umi's rapier, it melted into water then reformed on the ground. "It's Escudo!" She squeaked in shock.  
"Here, use this." Clef unbelted the sheath from Umi's waist and tossed it to the redhead. He wasn't really all that surprised that her weapon was Escudo.  
Hikaru somehow managed to put away the sword and then them to the rooftop door and holding it open. After walking a few lengths of hallway, they met Ferio. "What happened? You guys look like you were /mauled/!" He commented, examining the wound on Fuu's cheek, then glancing over to the mage's robes that were soiled with blood stains.

"We were." Hikaru said quietly. "Long story."

"What happened to her?" The king asked, indicating the unconscious bluette in the mage's arms.

"We will tell you later." Clef replied hastily. "We are in a rush."

"Do you at least need me to carry her?" Ferio offered, noticing the weak condition of Clef.

He shook his head. "It will be fine." Then Hikaru led them away, neither of the girls noticing the Guru's faint blush.

After a long walk through the hallways, they arrived at a navy door with the gold seal of Selece on the door. Hikaru opened the door and held it for them as they filed in. Clef set Umi down on the bed, then immediately collapsed in a chair, weak from loss of blood.

"Guru, are you okay?" Fuu asked walking towards him as Hikaru leaned the staff against the wall.

"Just blood loss and exhaustion. I'm too weak to heal myself." He said the last part as if displeased with himself.

"Hikaru, get some bandages. We will have to hold you together the old fashioned way. I'm too weak to use my winds as well." Hikaru returned with the supplies within a minute, looking like she had sprinted. Her bangs were sticking to her face with perspiration and she was just recovering her breath. "Now, where are your wounds?" Fuu asked, unravelling the bandages and pulling out some gauze. "It's hard to tell with this bloody mess." Clef shrugged his outer robe off to reveal the torn apart sleeves of his shirt, skin showing and blood oozing out in many places. "Oh, Clef." She felt bad for her old teacher. He looked on the edge of consciousness, eyes barely staying open. She tore the sleeves off and cleaned the wounds with rubbing alcohol, ignoring his hisses of protest. Afterwards, she placed gauze pads all up the arm that had a long gash in it along with the puncture wounds. After using a compression wrap, she did the same with his upper arm on the other side, where her claws had dug in. "There, I think you will be fine so long as you don't jostle the wounds too much."

"Thanks Fuu." He said softly, no energy left to talk normally. She nodded towards him, then repeated the cleaning process with her cheek in the mirror across the room. When finished, she had a gauze pad on the slash, taped down with some medical tape.

"Fuu, I thought you could only heal with magic." Hikaru commented, watching with interest.

"I learned healing arts before I learned magic." She responded. Clef had dozed off, exhausted from the task of staying conscious. "We should leave them here to rest and check back later." She advised, picking up all the soiled gauzes and disposing of them. Then, she led the way out of the room.

-.-.-.-

Clef woke in stages as his body restored some of the blood lost. He noticed that he was slipping sideways in the chair, so he straightened himself up. Stopping midway through, he winced in pain as he tried to put weight on his left arm. 'What happened to me?' He wondered, half dazed and confused from having just woke up. Clef glanced around. 'This isn't the usual setting.' Then, he remembered the events that had occurred. "Oh Umi... Why did you do this?." He whispered. "Was your past really that upsetting?" A few accidental insults had turned her on her friends. She must have never been given love or friendship. Always kicked out from places. Her little rant about being seen as a disgusting beast somehow struck his heart.  
He glanced at the bed and saw Umi curled up into a tight ball. At least the wound on her side had closed. The arrow landed very close to a main artery. Her side was rising and falling slowly in her slumber. He sighed quietly in relief. Then, her face contorted and she turned to lay on her back, eyes clenching shut as if she didn't want to see something. 'Are you having a nightmare, Umi?' Clef wondered. But she needed her rest and he didn't try to wake her up in case he presumed wrongly.

-.-.-.-.-

**Her dreams haunted her of her past. Umi absolutely didn't like it, but when her temper got out of control, she occasionally went demon.**

_**'Where am I?' Umi floated near the ceiling of one of the inns she had gone to before. No one seemed to notice a strange demon girl floating so she looked down at herself, finding her arm transparent. 'They can't see me...'**_  
_**Just then, the door swung open and her former image waltzed in. Age fifteen. She sat down at one of the barstools, cloak concealing her face and ears. She ordered a Cephiran Whiskey.**_  
_**"Aren't you a bit young to be drinking?" A voice rasped where her human ears would be. She turned around and was face to face with a man, about age 30. When he breathed in her face it smelled heavily of alcohol. **_  
_**She backed up slightly. "I will have you know, I am perfectly old enough to be drinking." The younger Umi sassed back, one hand on her hip. It was a lie of course.**_  
_**"What if I don't believe you? Prove it." He heavily crashed his lips onto hers, grabbing at the neck of the cloak. Umi's eyes widened, and she shoved him away. This surprised the more muscular man, who did not expect this much strength from a lady. "Ooh, looks like I found myself a sassy one." He slurred. The man was obviously too drunk to know what he was doing. "Why don't you come up to my room with me, pretty lady?" He suggested, tracing a pattern on her arm with his finger. **_

_**"How about NO?" Umi snapped. If she were in cat form, her hackles would be up. **_

_**"Oh, come on. Just ONE night. Have a little fun." She shoved him away once more, standing up so that she was not trapped against the bar. Umi looked him dead in the eye and nearly hissed.**_

_**"I SAID NO." Was her firm answer. She stepped to the side and set her course for the door out of this place. The demon was clenching and unclenching her fists in an effort not to scream at the guy. Drunken fool. As she walked away, he grabbed her by the upper arm and pulled her backwards towards him. **_

_**"And I won't take no for an answer." She whirled around and punched him in the jaw. He looked shocked and held his jaw with the hand not on her arm. "Hmnph. I like my women to have a little fire to their attitude." **_

_**"I am NOT your WOMAN!" She snarled, eyes winking red for a moment. Umi bared her teeth, uncaring of all the witnesses. He pulled her backwards by the waist toward him and she lost it, letting her inner demon out. Umi spun and clawed the guy across the face, getting his eye in the process.**_

_**"You BITCH!" He screamed. If there were still people unwatching of the scene, they were now. Her response to him was a sharp hiss along with a punch to the gut, then she ran out the door of the bar on all fours. **_

_**The man signaled to his friends sitting at a table across the bar. They all stood up, abandoning the various alcoholic beverages and walked over. "Let's get her." He announced. "She will be quite the catch, if not a bit odd. But hey, oddballs make life interesting." His group agreed with a hearty laugh and followed him out the door. **_

_**The waitress nearby sent a little prayer for the poor girl who conflicted with THAT gang. They were named Blood and Fire, known around these parts for their endless lust for women. They get what they want, even if the woman gets severely injured in the process. **_

_**Umi, even though she was freaking out before, was able to calm herself now. Her demon side had retreated back but it was still stirred, making her feel very weak. The still night air had a calming affect and gave her somewhat of a sense of security. Little did she know, that was a false sense. **_  
_**She heard the crack of a dried up leaf behind her and spun to face the person who had alerted her, hands loose and ready at her sides. From the shadows of what looked to be a fruit market emerged seven muscular figures. Once the lead stepped into the light she noticed blood dripping down the whole left side of his face. **_

_**"You have decided to mess with the wrong person, little missy." He rasped, messily flicking blood off his cheek and flinging some at her. "It just so happens that my crew were there at the bar with me. They saw the WHOLE thing happen. And when you cross one member of Blood and Fire, you cross all of us. Now, you either give up and let me have what I want, or I will have to take you by force." The young Umi's eyes caught a glint of sharp metal next to his right thigh. **_

_**"You better go sleep off the booze, you fools." She snapped. "I'm sober and in WAY better condition that you all." Umi pointed at each one of them. "I could seriously harm each one of you without so much as a chipped fingernail. Whoops! I meant CLAW." She revealed her hands, claws flexed to intimidate them. Hopefully, if she acted strong, she wouldn't have to fight. **_

_**"Oh she is a demon, I'm so scared!" One near the back sneered. **_

_**"You should be."**_

_**Before she even knew it, the creep that she had clawed in the face had her pinned against a wall, dagger at her throat. He pressed the flat side near her trachea. "I will allow you to choose right now." His only reply was a hardening of her eyes, so he turned the blade and a tiny cut formed. Just in the skin, but it was a terrible threat to her life. The man was so focused on getting her to break that he didn't see her ready her claws until it was too late. She dug her claws into his gut, then used her other hand to fling the blade far out of his reach. Umi didn't have enough energy to go demon again, even though it would be helpful THIS time.**_

_**She shoved him away and then jumped on the roof of the nearest building, hood flipping off on the way. Umi didn't care that her ears were revealed. "This is a lesson to you and all of your buddies to NEVER mess with me again." She concluded. "So long, twerps." Umi made her way from one rooftop the the next until she found a safe tree to pass out in. Going demon had left her so weak that she couldn't have dealt with a less life-threatening (or pride threatening.) situation. Eventually, she settled down and fell asleep, the strange feeling that they would meet again lingering. **_

-.-.-.-

Umi woke up, gasping for breath and shot bolt upright in her bed. Panting, she looked confusedly at her surroundings and noticed a strange yet somehow familiar symbol. The entire room was decorated with dark shades of blue and golds to give a very powerful appearance. She couldn't help it but tears streamed from her eyes when her mind snapped back to the dream. Clef was startled by her sudden awakening, so he jumped up out of his chair. She put her hands over her face, and her shoulders were shaking violently with her sobs. Clef noticed this, his eyes softening. The proud demon never cried. It must have been something serious. He moved to sit on the edge of the bed, laying a comforting arm around her quaking form.

"Umi, it's okay..." He soothed. "It was just a dream." The girl took him by surprise by throwing herself into his arms. Clef was very shocked, but put his arms tightly around her, even though the injuries were protesting. He put his face on her head in between her ears and muttered reassuring words into her hair.

"But it /wasn't/ a dream, Clef!" She sobbed. "It was my past when I was living alone. But that dream was terrifying!"

"You can talk to me about it if you want... You can trust me not to tell anyone. But, could you please get off my arm first?"

For the first time, Umi noticed that his arms were heavily bandaged. She scrambled backward, but held up one of his arms to examine. The wrappings were slightly stained with blood. Then she noticed there were bloodstains in the side of her tanktop too. "What happened?" She whispered, somewhat shocked, eyes finally drying out.

"I was attacked by a demon..." Clef replied hesitantly.

"And I was too? Is that why I fell unconscious? I don't remember anything." She sighed in frustration, wiping half-dried tears from her eyes.

"In a way, yes..." Umi unwrapped the bandages, examining the slash wounds on one arm and the punctures on the upper arm on each side.

Umi looked concerned and held her claws about a centimeter away from the wound, measuring. Her eyes widened; an exact match. "Did... Did I do this, Clef?" She stammered in shock, new tears starting to form.

He looked downwards. "Yes."

"I vaguely remember something to do with Fuu and Hikaru... Are they okay?"

"Yes. Fuu just has a slash on her cheek. Hikaru's perfectly fine... You clawed me the worst, most likely because I was able to snap you out of it. That's how I got the injuries."

Umi closed her eyes with a pained expression. "Why is it that I hurt the ones I care about?" She muttered.

Clef's eyes widened. "What was that?"

"N-nothing... How were you able to snap me out of it? No one has done that before." He blushed slightly, but it was not visible in the dark, even to Umi's sharp night vision.

"I just spoke to you not as a beast, but calmly and was non-aggressive. I dropped my staff so that I didn't appear threatening and you calmed down." He conveniently left out the part about him hugging her. Some things are best kept to oneself...

"Clef! When you dropped your staff, you had no defense and I could have completely mauled you!"

"But you /didn't./"

"Yeah but-"

"No arguing. I knew what was best. Now, would you like to get something to eat?" The Guru changed the subject, avoiding further debate.

"Are you recovered enough to heal yourself yet?" He nodded. "Then do it. I can't believe you healed me before yourself." She muttered the last part but he heard it anyway. Just to be sure, she lifted up the side of her tanktop to expose the wound. There was new, fresh skin where she had been hit. "Clef. There's so much blood. How badly was I hit?"

"It was terrible." He would not lie about it. To her, anyway. "I think it hit near a main artery..."

"I've had something like that happen to me before and I healed very soon thereafter. No treatment was needed. How is this different?" Umi asked, gently unwrapping his arm from about her and standing up.

Clef stood up as well, holding up his index finger and wrapping a ribbon of purple magic about himself, the wounds on his arms glowing and getting replaced by fresh skin as well. He feigned distaste. "So curious about /everything./" He couldn't help it, but a smile broke through at her surprised expression. "When a Magic Knight inflicts damage on a demon, it temporarily cuts off their self-healing abilities."

Umi's lips pressed into a tight line. "Once again, my demon causes trouble for me... Let's go grab a bite."

After their meal, dawn was breaking. Fuu and Hikaru came out from their chambers first, used to getting up early. When they saw their friend in the (newly fixed) dining hall, their eyes widened in shock and they rushed forward, examining the pair.

"You're both okay?" Hikaru asked, examining one of the Guru's newly healed arms.

"Yes, I've regained enough energy to heal." The Mage replied, slightly bowing to The Queen. "I take it you did as well, Fuu?"

Fuu lazily waved her hand to dismiss the bowing gesture. "Yeah. I also did a once-over to check on Hikaru. Sometimes she just won't TELL us about a wound." She replied, giving the Fire Knight a sharp look.

Umi was silent through the whole conversation so far, her head bowed causing her bangs to shade her face. Hikaru noticed first. "Umi, is anything wrong?" Before they knew it, the girl launched herself forward, surrounding the unsuspecting girls with a hug.

"I'm so, so sorry for what I did to you, girls." She said shakily, her lungs raspy as if suggesting to sob. Her apology took the other knights by surprise.

"Umi... Do you not remember what happened?" Fuu asked softly, returning the hug with a pat on her back. Umi's head, supported on both their shoulders, shook 'no.' "We should be the ones apologizing." She amended, backing up from the hug slightly to face the bluette demon. Fuu grasped one of Umi's hands and Hikaru did so with the other hand.

"We are sorry for judging demons before we gave you a chance. You will make a great addition to our Magic Knight circle." Hikaru apologized, squeezing the hand she grasped in reassurance.

Umi sniffed, still managing to hold back tears. "Thank you guys. I'm sorry I freaked out on you, my inner demon emerged. Now, I'm going to let you in on something..." She paused to look around the room for any others, then cast her senses about for anyone except the other two Knights and Clef. Once satasfied, she went on. "You must keep this a secret for it is my greatest weakness..." She paused until they nodded. "I'm not a full demon. Only half. I have the qualities of a demon, but I got human thought processes and feelings. So I am not another 'emotionless, ruthless demon.'"

The girls blinked once, twice, then looked as if they understood. Fuu more so than Hikaru. "How is this a weakness?" The latter asked, adjusting her glasses to keep them from slipping off her nose.

"Well, there are certain times of vulnerability. During the new and full moons. I become full human then full demon respectively... I'm more vulnerable in human form because, I hate to admit it but I don't really know how to defend myself in human form. And frankly, I'm screwed if I need a wound healed." They had a look of understanding and nodded agreement.

"Once again, we are sorry for judging you. It was wrong." Hikaru said, giving the demon one last quick hug. "You will make a good addition to the team. Now we are going to go eat breakfast. Seems like the pair of you have already eaten so Fuu and I are going to go eat with Lantis and Ferio. Don't worry, we will give them the news about you being a Magic Knight first, so that they don't snap to judgements."

"That would be nice, thank you." Umi responded. Hikaru affirmed with a nod and then proceeded to drag Fuu by the arm to get some food. The queen stumbled in surprise at the tug on her arm, causing Umi to have to hide a giggle behind her hand. Once the other knights had left, Umi spun around quickly, accidentally putting her face dangerously too close to Clef's. She blinked and blushed, whirling back around to hide the red tint of her cheeks.

He cleared his throat. "I have some paperwork and copying to do in my bibliotheca. You can come along if you have nothing better to do." The Mage offered.

Umi waved a hand dismissively. "I don't want to be a bother."

"You're never a bother, Umi." He commented, then immediately clammed up. What had he just admitted?

The teen blinked. "You sure?"

He couldn't back out now. "Positively."

"Okay then, lead the way!" Umi said a bit too cheerily. This bibliotheca must be interesting, being royal property and all. Even though she had never been to a proper school, Umi knew how to read and write. She was self-taught, practicing all the time. The bluette was looking forward to seeing his collection.

In the library, Clef was sat at his desk in the midst of piles of books. They looked to be hand-bound, and they were hand-written as well. The project he was working on was to translate a book of research from old Cephiran to their current language.

Umi laid on the rug as he wrote, arms crossed at the wrist and her chin laying on them. It seemed like a position that a relaxed cat would be in, and that would be an accurate observation. Her ear twitched in annoyance. Clef muttered as he wrote! She needed something to zone it out before she screamed. The Mage was too entranced with his translation to notice her get up and walk through the rows of shelves, searching for a book of interest. Umi found one about demons and returned to her original place on the rug, opening the book. She wanted to see what types of faulty information would be in this relic...

On one page, she found an illustration of what seemed to be a half dog demon. Flicking the tattered, age worn pages to the section where it talked about the triggering of demon instincts upon rage, she became enveloped into her readings. Umi was fascinated at how much she didn't know about her race. It turns out, the stage may also be triggered by extreme emotion or possessiveness, causing the animal in her to kick in.

What she didn't know was that the Master Mage had taken a break from his work, eyes beginning to ache, and had started talking to her. When she didn't respond, he turned around in his chair and looked at her. The girl was deep in thought, entranced with the book in front of her. He didn't necessarily think she could read or write, but she seemed to be doing so well. Umi's brows were furrowed slightly in thought, along with her ears. He glanced at the edge of the book and saw grey bindings. Judging based on the handwriting, it was written by his previous master. Clef, himself had read the book cover to cover before but needed a refresher. He decided to break the silence.

"How do you like that book?" The Mage said not so loudly. But it was enough to make the focused demon jump a bit.

She glanced up. "This book knows more about me than I do!" Umi giggled.

"Where did you learn to read? It takes a pretty high level to be able to read books such as that."

"I'm self-taught." She replied, sitting up and flicking her hair out of her face. She needed her hair to be less wild.

He hummed in thought. "Interesting." Picking up on her annoyance, he asked her, "What's wrong, Umi?"

She huffed in annoyance, pulling her uneven bangs between index and middle fingers. "I need my hair cut decently. Frankly, I'm not the best at cutting my own hair."

"Oh. We can arrange to get your hair trimmed." Glancing at her hand, he muttered, "I suppose we should do something about your claws as well. They're a dead giveaway." He tapped the quill of the pen to his chin in thought.

"Sounds good."

"We can arrange for that today, I suppose... I mean, why wait until tomorrow when we have the whole rest of the day." Clef reasoned.

"I agree. Then, sometime we will have to announce that you now have a third water knight." There was a cautious glint in her eye to make sure he knew what she meant. She could be revealed as the water knight, but not as a demon.


End file.
